Travel Guides

Navigation

Reeperbahn

Hamburg's notorious red light district, to the east of the city
centre in the St Pauli zone, has become its second-greatest tourist
attraction, according to the city management. The Reeperbahn (Rope
Street) is where rope used to be produced for the ships in the
harbour. It is now a half-mile long street which, along with its
cross-streets, is filled with bright lights and flirtatious
prostitutes, crammed with bars and establishments offering erotic
entertainment. The Reeperbahn became the neighbourhood where
sailors of old were encouraged to seek entertainment after they
were banned from invading the city's more respectable areas in the
19th century. The district also boasts an Erotic Art Museum (at
Nobistor 10A), which is privately owned and restricted to persons
over 16. The Beatles used to play in a club in the area which is
now a Pizza Hut and there is a tribute to them called the
Beatlesplatz where there are aluminium silhouettes of the band as
they looked when they played in Hamburg. Although the district is
extremely popular it will not delight everyone and you should not
visit if you are offended by prostitution. It is better to explore
on foot because parking is very expensive and hard to come by.
There is a possibility of petty crime in the area.